The First 100 Days
& Beyond
The Proven Program that
Enables Executives to Succeed in
Challenging New Roles
Discover a step-by-step process for making a strong first impression, aligning with stakeholders, avoiding missteps, and building a foundation of trust and momentum that will propel future success in your new position.
Congratulations on landing the new job!
You’ve been wanting to operate at a higher level…more responsibility, bigger team, more layers…and now you are.
It is gratifying and bodes well…success here could set-up the rest of your career.
But bigger responsibilities mean there’s a lot on the line. Past accomplishments don’t guarantee success…not at this level.
In fact, nearly half of executives can’t navigate the transition. They can’t get up-to-speed. They struggle to influence those they used to look up to. They run afoul of cultural norms.
Executives struggle in new jobs because they don’t understand that the transition process itself is a job within the job.
The job of transition is to establish a foundation on which to build long term success.
Most leaders don’t have a systematic approach. Some don't even have a good framework for thinking about how to enter effectively:
"Should I just say ‘yes’ to everything to keep my boss happy?"
"The team needs an overhaul. How fast can I move?"
"How can I ensure I don't stumble as a new executive?"
The honest truth is most executives transitioning to new jobs just “wing-it” and do what they have done in the past.
A casual approach might work at lower levels, but at the executive level, the expectations and demands are too intense and too unrelenting .
Leveraging proven methods, you don’t have to grasp for “quick wins," you can start a flywheel.
The First 100 Days & Beyond program was designed to build a foundation for lasting success…
Seventeen modules filled with best practices and 40 short planning exercises to help you enter effectively, avoid common problems, and build the momentum that will be the key to long-term success.
Hundreds of C-Suite executives have parlayed these exact tools, templates and suggestions into the best start of their careers.
Whatever level of support you choose, you will get step-by-step instruction, reflections, and templates. You will know why the suggestions are important so you can leverage what will work best for your situation. You will walk in on Day 1 with structure and a gameplan. Those plans will of course change, but having them will give you confidence.
Countless executives have told me that the program is filled with strategies and actions they had never even considered in the past.
Here’s just a sampling of typical comments…
“Your recommendations worked! They really, really worked!”
“I couldn’t believe how the people around me responded to
what you suggested I do.”“My boss had a control-freak reputation. But following your
guidance, I felt the reins loosening and his trust in me grow. I
was surprised how quickly we began collaborating on
everything.”
This program works. The executives going through it have told me so. If you are willing to go through the modules and do the exercises, I can promise you’ll have your best start ever.
By the end of this program, after the first 100 days in your new role, you’ll experience:
An earned confidence with strong, favorable first impressions.
The ability to manage the tsunami of new information coming at you with
grace.
Being aligned with your boss while building a trust that continues to evolve
as evidenced by increases in autonomy and decision making authority.
The makings and the markers of a strong team with buy-in for any
remaining steps.
Having established winning norms and an operating rhythm beginning to
drive success.Having assessed stakeholder readiness and support, and applied targeted
influence strategies.
My Story & Invitation to You...
During my career, I have started a number of executive jobs. Not once did I have a going-in objective or plan. I thought, “I’m smart. I’ll just figure it out.”
That worked until it didn’t.
I got fired from a job after four years, despite some great successes early on.
I realized I had never taken the time to build solid, supportive relationships, especially when I first joined. When results started to decline, I had no one in my corner advocating for me.
After this wake up call, I started thinking about executives I had seen hired around me. Some got smoothly on their feet. Others didn’t and were eventually either let go or layered.
I built a strong understanding of the keys to leadership effectiveness through my academic background and job experiences. After earning a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology, I worked in Human Resources, then as a management consultant and a Six Sigma practice leader. I was also on the management team
of a Fortune 600, running complex operations with a big P&L. But the operations work was not fulfilling. At the core, I am a teacher, a communicator, and a coach. I wanted to get back to the work I love.
One day, I was thinking about how to differentiate my coaching business, when I had one of those lightbulb-above-the-head moments: “Most coaching is done with established executives. Why isn’t anyone helping them get established?”
I knew a structured, repeatable approach was needed to help execs avoid the all-too-common mistakes that keep executives from getting established. And given
my experience and passion for communicating and teaching, I knew I could build something great.
I created the first version of my First 100 Days program that night.
That was seven years ago. Since then my approach has helped hundreds of executives get off to the best start of their careers.
Is this new job important? What would a great start mean for you? Your family? Your organization?
I invite you to join me and the hundreds of other executives who have leveraged these tools to build a foundation for lasting success starting on Day 1.
— Dennis
Impact of the First 100 Days Program on a Executive’s New
Position…
Stepping into a new executive role, Dennis helped me understand why the first 100 days are so critical. With his guidance, I walked in the door on Day 1 with a working 100-day framework that kept the noise out of my head, allowing me to relax, hit the ground running without anxiety, and set the stage for quick wins.
My ramp-up time was shortened by at least three months, enabling me to make meaningful “impact plays” much sooner because, as Dennis says, the game slowed down for me earlier than normal. He often reminded me that leaders aren’t hired to play small ball — they’re hired to win, and win fast.
Dennis’ framework outlined clear actions for each phase of the first 100 days. Tools like the Walking Deck, Key One-Time Conversations, and Continuous Alignment Conversations were invaluable in keeping me stay aligned with my boss’s commitments, priorities, and expectations.
I strongly recommend Dennis Adsit’s First 100 Days and Beyond program — it’s easily a 20× ROI investment.
-Greg Martin
Vice President, Shared Services & Partner Development, Oklahoma Hospital Association
What Executives are Saying About Dennis and the First 100 Days & Beyond Program…
Sarah Cole
Head of Industry, Google
“After receiving news of my promotion, I was ecstatic, but suddenly it all felt daunting. I was going to be managing a larger team with
elevated expectations from my leadership. So I wanted to do everything I could to set myself up for success. Starting a new job, there is so much coming at you. But working with Dennis gave me the tools to quickly assess the business, talent and opportunities ahead. More importantly, he helped with frameworks for building a solid business plan, managing my team and leadership -- that I continue to refer to often. I felt confident going into my new role and was clear on how to make an impact in the first 100 days on the job.”
Mark Davis
Senior Director Portfolio Marketing, Marvell Technologies
“As part of several career transitions, I used books such as “The First 90 Days” to help establish myself. I never considered a coach, thinking that if I applied the lessons, that was enough.
I was advised by a friend to consider Dennis as my coach for my last transition. Let me tell you, there is no comparison to having Dennis as a ‘monkey on your back’ pressing you to think about a dozen
things you never thought about before. And then giving you the tools to act on them in a systematic fashion. Who does this? Not me, before I met Dennis. And the effect? Powerful.
The bottom line: if you want to “raise your game,” let Dennis help you. You won’t regret it.”
Mikko Disini
Global VP of Product Management, A10 Networks
“I was elevating from a functional to an executive leadership role. I knew I needed to properly insert into the leadership team, develop a good working relation with the CEO and the board, and expand my focus to whole company outcomes as part of my daily thinking.
Dennis’ approach showed me the leadership capabilities I needed to quickly develop. For example, he made it clear that executives in
transition need to have a plan that incorporates individual and team assessment and stakeholder assessment and influence strategies to ensure proper collaboration. For each of these, Dennis’ program provided reflections that helped me structure my thinking, assessments to identify areas of growth, and templates to help me
get the input and buy-in of the executive team and Board.”
Alyson Welch
Chief Revenue Office, Neo4j
“As I launched into a new company as their Chief Revenue Officer, I wanted to kick off my new position on the right foot, and focus on
what was important. A colleague referred me to Dennis and he guided me through his First 100 Days Program. His approach gave
me the structure to launch in an efficient manner. He helped me solicit stakeholder feedback from my new team and build out an assessment of the business. It's been 365 days now and I still refer
back to my 100 Day Plan. I have since referred several of my peers and colleagues to Dennis because of the value and impact working
with him had for me.”
What You'll Learn in the Program
KEY 1
Assess Fit
We all like to lead with our strengths, but when transitioning to a new role, you need to get clear on how the new job is different and going to require you to stretch as a leader. It's also important to know the common missteps, the tripwires, executives make in their First 100 Days so you don’t make them.
Module 1: The First Hundred Day Roadmap
Module 2: Identify Key Leadership and Experience Gaps
Module 3: Transition Tripwires
KEY 2
Start Before You Start
We all like to lead with our strengths, but when transitioning to a new role, you need to get clear on how the new job is different and going to require you to stretch as a leader. It's also important to know the common missteps, the tripwires, executives make in their First 100 Days so you don’t make them.
Module 1: The First Hundred Day Roadmap
Module 2: Identify Key Leadership and Experience Gaps
Module 3: Transition Tripwires
KEY 3
Build Support for You and Your Change Agenda
You were hired to lead people to some preferred future. It could be 3 years from now or it could be something more near term. People need to know where you want to take them. They have to buy-in to the new direction and they have to trust that you can lead them there.
Module 7: First 30 Days…Building Trust & Closing Your Knowledge Gaps
Module 8: Managing Your Boss
Module 9: Developing a Strategic Change Agenda
Module 10: Assessing and Building the Team
Module 11: Nudging the Culture
Module 12: Understanding and Influencing Stakeholders
KEY 4
Steady Communication and Progress Checks
People like to say they are going to be “head down for the next 100 days.” That is a recipe for disaster. You want to be heads up, reflecting on where you are, where you are getting traction, where your support is strongest, and you want to be communicating with and listening to all the key stakeholders.
Module 13: Communicating During the First 100 Days
Module 14: Building Momentum & Operating Rhythm
Module 15: Weekly Actions: Reflection Questions, Template Updates, & Warning Signs
Module 16: Staying Aligned with Your Boss on Priorities and Performance
Module 17: Day 101 and Beyond...
What You'll Receive
17 Training Videos with Dennis
You’ll get 4 hours of video teaching content across 17 modules to allow you to self-pace this program in bite-size increments.
38 Exercises Across the 17 Modules
You will get specific exercises that relate to the teaching content in each Module. These exercises will help you reflect, assess, and
plan. Some exercises will help you create slides that you will actually use in your First 100 Days.
Exclusive Course Website for All Materials
This is your hub for all of the materials and support information in the program including recordings of the group coaching calls.
Once you purchase the program, it is yours to use for this job and any other new job you start. You will have Lifetime Access to your program materials.
Knowledge & Support PDFs
These eight PDFs are articles, case studies, podcast extracts that will provide you guidance and inspiration along your learning journey.
Group Coaching Calls: 2x Per Month for 4 months
These live coaching calls with Dennis on Zoom will help you move through the program and provide you with targeted coaching to bring the training to life and help you apply it to your needs and situation. You will also get to learn from other executives going through their own First Hundred Days experiences.
The calls are recorded and can be accessed on the training site so you can listen later if you have a conflict with the scheduled call. You can submit questions in advance and listen to the answer when you have time to access the recording.
1-1 Coaching Sessions with Dennis (for Support 30 & Support 100 Options)
The situations you might encounter in your First Hundred Days…a demanding boss, a recalcitrant peer, a disruptive direct report, a layoff that did not come up during the interviews…might be new to you, but they are not new to me. I can help bring the materials to life, tailor them to your needs, and help you work through the difficulties you might encounter in your new role. If you're entering a high stakes job, tapping into my decades of experience and coaching will provide a very high return on your investment.
More Sharings From Our Clients Coming Out of the First 100 Days Program…
Fred Koopmans
Chief Product Officer, Big Panda
Your Coach and Guide, Dennis Adsit
For 35 years, Dennis has been helping leaders, teams, and organizations achieve breakthrough results.
He’s spent his entire career finding and mining untapped opportunities. He was a behavioral economist before the term existed, was on the cutting edge of the Six Sigma movement, and saw the incredible, untapped opportunities in call centers. He now focuses on two neglected keys to leadership effectiveness: developing high performing teams and helping transitioning executives build trust and momentum during their First 100 Days.
He is the founder of Adsum Insights, an executive coaching and leadership development firm.
He has developed leaders and teams at Apple, Amazon, BDO, Databricks, DataDog, Google, HKS Architects, IronClad, Johnson & Johnson, Kite Pharma, Synopsys, Twilio, Unity, and many more.
Dennis was previously SVP of Operations at Intuit. Before that he was the Six Sigma practice leader at Aon Consulting. He started his career in OD/HR at Honeywell Information Systems.
While in Boston, he taught courses on Leadership and HR Management in the Evening MBA program at Northeastern University. For ten years, he was a mentor with Women Unlimited, a year-long development program for mid-career women.
Dennis has an Executive MBA from Stanford University, a Ph.D. in I/O Psychology from the University of Minnesota, and a BS in both Mathematics and Psychology from Bowling Green State University
GET STARTED TODAY!
First 100 Days & Beyond Training
This is a self-paced training program providing you with video instruction, self-assessments, reflection exercises, and usable slide templates; as well as LIVE group coaching calls on Zoom with Dennis. You can begin whenever it works out best with your transition timeline. There are THREE program options to choose from, with two of them providing private 1-1 coaching sessions in addition to the group coaching calls. This allows you to pick the level of support that's right for you.
Core Program
All Training Materials: 17 training
videos (4 hours), 16 Word documents
with exercises (38), templates, tools,
and strategies, 8 PDFs of articles,
case studies, and podcast quotes
with inspiration and guidance for
your learning journeyGroup Coaching Calls with Dennis on
Zoom (2x per month) for 4 months
from your registration dateExclusive Training Website with
materials and all recordingsConcierge Support
$2,500
Support 30 Program
Everything in the Core Program (all
the materials, strategies, articles,
case studies, etc,)Group Coaching Calls with Dennis on Zoom (2x per month) for 4 months
from your registration dateExclusive Training Website with materials and all recordings
Concierge Support
PLUS: You’ll get a higher level of support with 1-1 private weekly coaching sessions with Dennis on Zoom for your first 30 days in your new position.
$5,000
Support 100 Program
Everything in the Support 30 Program (all materials, private training site, group coaching calls, and private 1-1 coaching)
PLUS 1: You’ll get the highest level of support with 1-1 private weekly coaching sessions with Dennis on Zoom through your entire first 100 days in your new position.
PLUS 2: You have the added option to skip watching the instructional videos on your own and schedule two or three 90-minute walk throughs of the material directly with Dennis on Zoom. This will allow you to ask questions as you go through the materials together. You still have access to the video training modules for later reference.
$9,500
Self Led Program
All Training Materials: 17 training videos (4 hours), 16 Word documents with exercises (38), templates, tools,
and strategies, 8 PDFs of articles, case studies, and podcast quotes with inspiration and guidance for your learning journeyExclusive Training Website with materials and all recordings
Note: this self led program does not include any coaching sessions
$799
If you're looking for other options to work more closely and privately with Dennis Adsit to tailor all
the information and learning to your exact situation, or if you want to work with Dennis beyond
your First Hundred Days... please click here to set up a 1-1 Discovery Call with Dennis.
Frequently Asked Questions...
Ideally, you would start the training 2-3 weeks prior to your first day on the job to give yourself time to review the material, do the reflections and exercises and prepare your own templates. It would be best to go through all the modules so you know what is there and can refer back to it during your first hundred days as needed. The first six modules are aimed to prepare you for Day 1. Getting through those would be the minimum.
Yes and no. There are many things you can do before Day 1 that make a noticeable difference. The program is also big on how you use your early days to make strong impressions and build trust. Those early days are already behind you, so you won’t be able to benefit from those aspects of the training for this job. But since you always have access to the materials, they will be useful for future jobs.
On the other hand, the title of the training is The First 100 Days and Beyond. The training was built around Leadership and Change Management Best Practices that are always applicable. Those aspects of the program and approach can always benefit you.
The live group coaching calls are twice a month on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of every month at 10 am PT / 1 pm ET on Zoom. You will have free access to these calls for 4 months after your purchase of the program. You can access the group coaching calls through a special Zoom link. https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5172598767?pwd=kEgij_KkgyQ
We record all of the group coaching calls, so if you are not able to make the call you can listen to the recording and still learn from the questions other executives have and Dennis’ coaching with them. These recordings are posted on the program site for your review.
Yes you can. Send them via email to: dennis@adsuminsights.com. Put “Group Coaching Call Question” in the subject line of your email.
If you choose the Support 30 or the Support 100 options, weekly 1-1 coaching calls with Dennis start your first week on the job. For the Support 100, you have the option of skipping the videos and doing a walk through of the materials directly with Dennis. As soon as you register for Support 30 or Support 100, Dennis will reach out to find a time that works for you.
Yes, both do. The 1-1 coaching with Dennis expires thirty days from the start of your new position for Support 30 and one hundred days from the start of your new position for Support 100. The group coaching calls expire 4 months from your registration in the program.
You will be given immediate access to the program site, which contains all of the teaching videos and documents for the training. It will also have all the logistics for joining the group coaching calls with Dennis, and other support components.
For the Support 30 and Support 100 Program options, Dennis will reach out to get your weekly calls scheduled during your first 30 and through your entire first 100 days respectively.
For the Core Program and the Support 30 Program, you are then free to proceed through the modules and exercises at your own pace. You are free to join the twice-monthly coaching calls as your schedule permits.
For the Support 100 Program, you have the option to skip the video instruction and schedule two to three, 90-minute walk-throughs of the material directly with Dennis so you can ask questions as you go through the materials together. You still have access to the video training modules for reference.
Since you get unlimited and lifetime access to this training program and ALL its materials (videos, exercises, documents, templates, case studies), there is no refund option on your purchase of this program. However, if there is some change to your start date of your new position, you can contact us about shifting the start date for your Support 30 or Support 100 coaching sessions.
© 2025 Adsum Insights. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.